Hungary „Despite the criticisms, we can justify the praise of the child protection system” Interview with Mr. Miklos Radoszav, general deputy director of the Budapest Methodological Child Protection Special Services (TEGYESZ)

December 11, 2011

Comment: The prestigious Hungarian economic weekly HVG published an interview with Miklos Radoszav, who, until last year, was the deputy director of the Methodological Center of Hungarian Child Protection Services. The interview covers a wide variety of subjects: it starts out with the situation of state care. Radoszav points out that policy makers would need to make changes in order to strengthen foster care in Hungary, including allowing less children per foster family, while he also points out that some families lose guardianship only because of homelessness, where the same amount of money that now goes for fostering could be spent on keeping the family together. He also states that due to the non-existence of social housing, many families that lose shelter have no way of going back to normalcy and the only solution for them is to give their children up.

On another subject he points to Hungarian prejudices when it comes to state care and recites his many pupils that are now successful professional adults. These young adults would never want to publicize that they grew up in state care due to the stigma this carries unfortunately. When asked about the CRC and its application in Hungary he says that the least development over the last 20 years was made in domestic abuse and points to the fact that irrespective of wealth or education people in Hungary still accept the physical abuse (hitting) of children a normal disciplinary measure.

The journalist interviewing Mr. Radoszav clearly wants to focus on most publicized events, like the accidental death of a 3-year-old in a care institution – but Radoszav defends the protection services and also states that it is not those services that create the problem, they only try to manage them. He gives non-conventional answers and is able to steer the discussion to more relevant topics such as foster care and housing benefits for the poor in lieu of taking their children away.

Comment: Judit Almasi, Head of Terre des hommes’ Regional Office for C/SEE.